Favorite Rides Fall 2018 | Page 57

PAGE 57
FALL 2018 ISSUE 02 / VOL . 03
today ) and before going out of business logged 308 runs for a total of 616,000 miles . Why is it we don ’ t honor Betamax , the eight-track cassette , water beds , lava lamps or the Edsel with the same enthusiasm ?
As I make my way across U . S . 50 I occasionally pat the flank of the RT ’ s tank , promising it the petro-equivalent of a handful of carrots and sugar cubes . I become aware of the distance between gas stations when the reserve light starts flashing . No problem . There ’ s a town ahead , and in America , every town has a gas station , right ? Another sign tells me that gas is available at Cold Springs . I pull into the charred ruins of a gas station . Dark shards of wood and two wrecked pumps , on which someone has taped a “ No Smoking ” sign . Unfamiliar with the range of the RT , I cover the next 30 or 40 miles with some anxiety . I have seen maybe eight cars all morning . The desert does not treat fools lightly .
Rolling into Austin on vapors , I gas up and have lunch at the Toiyabe Café . A sign by the front door boasts “ I survived HWY 50 : The Loneliest Road in America ” and tells travelers to “ validate your Highway 50 Survival Guide
The earth rises , the water washes away . The mesas outside Grand Junction welcome you to Colorado .